Blog Posts From The Brave Programmer

10 Stupid Twitter Mistakes to Avoid

Oct1

Written by:2009/10/01 09:30 AM

Twitter, is the social networking app that has taken the world by storm in recent month and years. Over recent months I have noticed a large increase of users, a.k.a. Twitters, using Twitter for their own personal gain. Turning it into a free marketing site where all they do is sell sell sell.

There are so many other useless Tweets on Twitter that I do not take notice of. If you want Twitter to work for you then take not of these mistakes and avoid them like the plague. Otherwise you will be a real Twit. Twit (noun) an offensive term that deliberately insults somebody's commonsense or consideration for others

1. No Profile Picture of Yourself.

This is a big no no. Whether someone has no profile picture at all or has one that isn't of them self is a complete newbie mistake. Listen, it’s a social network. How do you expect us to socialise if we do not know who you are what you look like.

The right thing to do: Upload your picture. Just do it.

2. No Bio

A bio is a personal introduction of yourself. It’s your chance to convince me to follow you. My mother always told me not to talk to strangers, if you want to remain a stranger, I will not talk no follow you. Who knows you could be a serial killer, pedophile, some porn wanna be star.

The right thing to do: Put up a short summary of yourself.

3. No or bad website address.

Although not everyone has a website or blog, this I understand. But this is also one that irritates me. It’s so easy to set up free blog and have some info about you, so why haven’t you done it? I also hate those shortened urls in your bio. It tells me that you are hiding something, it’s a trap, and normally leads to some spammy page or site. I will not click on it or follow you.

The right thing to do: Put a direct link to your site or blog. Make it real.

4. Sell Sell Sell.

I hate this. All you do is try to use Twitter to sell me something. Listen this is not you local mall or market. It is a Social Network. Be social. Some advertising, if done correctly will work. But it is the exception rather than the rule. If you want me to buy something, earn my trust first, and make sure I will benefit from it. I don’t come to Twitter to buy stuff. There are tons of other websites where I can do that.

I guarantee you will quickly become the most unpopular and least liked person if you try and sell your followers some business opportunity or product.

The right thing to do: Sell your stuff somewhere else.

5. Auto Follow.

Auto-following everyone who follows them just shows that you are not interested in me. I could be your local serial killer, or some other idiot. But what do you know, you just auto followed me. The point of Twitter is to listen to and talk with people who interest you, not just anybody who happens to randomly hit your profile page.

The right thing to do: Switch it off. Follow people who are of interest to you.

6. Auto DM (Direct Message).

Oohhh, this is an irritation. When I follow you, you send me an auto DM, thanking me then pointing me to something you’re selling. If you’re really grateful that I am following you, DM me for my bank account and send me $10. But don’t spam me with some rubbish about being really grateful or your latest way of earning $78,377,957 in a month.

The right thing to do: Ask your followers to introduce themselves, and then reply when they do.

7. Irregular Updates or none at all.

Do you really think that I am going to follow someone who is following 657,847,390 users and has 4 updates? People don’t expect hourly posts and they don’t necessarily expect daily posts – but they do expect meaningful, consistent activity. If you can’t post regular valuable content, or add valuable information to a discussion – you probably shouldn’t be bothering with social media to begin with.

The right thing to do: Post regular, relevant, informational updates.

8. Using other people to post on your behalf.

Do you really think that Oprah updates her own Twitter account? Hey, news flash, I am not interested in your secretary, I’m interested in you. If I wanted to read what your assistant has to say, I will follow them.

If you are tweeting on behalf of a company, make that abundantly clear, but get the right person to do it.

The right thing to do: Update your own account. Make it personal.

9. Your updates are all about self.

Twitter is about giving more than receiving or asking. Twitter is not the Internet version of the Town Crier where you simply blow your own trumpet. If you want people to ignore you, tweet about yourself all day. The idea about being social is to help others out, inquire about their day or problems. I repeat, If you want people to ignore you, tweet about yourself all day.

The right thing to do: Tweet about other people. Spread the love. Pay it forward.

10. Pointless useless updates.

Listen, I do not need to know when you’re going to the toilet, or how difficult that experience was. I do not need to know every piece of music you listen to throughout the day every three minutes. I have no problem with the odd personal tweets like, “Wow, I am so tired”, or “I’m sick today, pray for me”. These can show a reason for your absence and does add personality. But too much too often becomes useless and pointless. Having a personal conversation is great, but there are certain things you need to keep to yourself, while others have no benefit for me at all.